Post by HundredProofSam on Feb 11, 2007 22:52:03 GMT 6

Forza Motorsport 2: The Complete Racing Simulation

By Dan Greenawalt

When we set off to create Forza Motorsport 2 on the Xbox 360, we knew we had to up the ante on realism for console racing simulators. To that end, a big part of our next-gen racing experience lies in the use of controller rumble and wheel force feedback to completely immerse the player. Racing in the real world is a multi-sensory experience with drivers relying on a well-integrated stream of visual, auditory, vestibular, and haptic information -- everything from the sound of the wind and tires to the pressure of the brake pedal and engine vibration traveling up through the steering column – to let them know how their car is performing. For the last couple weeks here at Turn 10, we’ve been fine-tuning the force feedback implementation in Forza Motorsport 2 using the Microsoft Wireless Force Feedback Wheel. In the process, I’ve written a whitepaper on why force feedback is so important to the overall racing simulation package. Below are a few abstracts from the article…

* Visual and audio cues are simply not enough to convey reality. Forza Motorsport 2 uses haptic interfaces to reproduce a realistic sensation of driving. Whether you play our game with a rumble-enabled controller or a full racing c0ckpit with force feedback wheel setup, Forza Motorsport 2 gives you tactile cues to improve your game. * Force feedback is the primary language between car, road, and driver. Force feedback is an extremely useful haptic interface. It provides real-time info on several key aspects of Forza Motorsport 2’s physics model. Obviously, force feedback simulates the steering wheel torque created by having the front tires on different terrain types, such as asphalt, rumble strips, or grass. It also simulates load balance between tires as well as slippage. * Without simulating “aligning torque,” your force feedback is useless. When driving a car in real-life, aligning torque is what your hands “feel” in the steering wheel. Aligning torque wants to point the steering wheel in the direction of travel. Aligning torque auto-corrects the steering wheel when you are over-steering or drifting. Aligning torque helps you find peak friction when you are understeering. Basically, aligning torque is the primary language that your front tires use to talk to you. * Your hardware is only as good as your software. Most of what you feel, as you play a racing game with wheel-in-hand, comes down to game design and software. When force feedback is poorly implemented in a game, even the best force feedback wheel is often a less effective controller than a rubber-band wheel with a good deadzone.

Check out forzamotorsport.net for my complete thoughts on racing simulators and why force feedback is crucial to their accuracy and design. Enjoy!

Post by HundredProofSam on Feb 16, 2007 18:45:54 GMT 6

Forza 2 cars revealed

A few weeks ago, we committed to a May 2007 release date for North America. Now Turn 10 and Microsoft Game Studios is happy to announce that Forza Motorsport 2 will also see its European retail debut in May 2007. After some debate, we felt it was only right for Forza Motorsport 2's online community if we were to release the game on a global level simultaneously.

Now that we've come clean about our European release date, we thought it'd be most appropriate to kick off the first of our six Forza Motorsport 2 car reveal lists with none other than the much coveted European exotics. So here now are 35 models from Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche and Maserati -- all rides which you'll be able to customize, from engine upgrades and body kits, to paintjobs and livery designs. Plus, each one of these cars takes heartbreaking damage when you pile with reckless abandon into turn one ;D. So without futher ado...

Post by HundredProofSam on Feb 17, 2007 10:15:28 GMT 6

what i meant was Forza has had only one game out before this...still people (probably Xbox fanboys) say that its better than the entire Gran Turismo series....that is unfair when there has only been one game out....but comparisons will always be there since there arent too many good racing simulators out there

i think i made that comment when sony was still gonna release Gran Turismo HD...i wasnt very happy with that because it was basically GT4 with reworked graphics....i didnt want sony to half-ass the first next-gen Gran Turismo....if they had relased it, im confident Forza 2 would have been better